Fla. Medical Assistant Uses ‘Magic’ To Ease Pediatric Pain

Published January 31, 2018•Updated on February 2, 2018 at 11:10 am

What to Know

Myranda Monroe is a medical assistant at the Community Health Centers of Pinellas.

She uses "magic tricks" to distract pediatric patients from the pain of shots and pricks.

A video of her treating 4-year-old D'Mitri Shelby has gone viral.

Most kids dread getting their shots.

Myranda Monroe is aware of that fact – but the 40-year-old medical assistant has a “magical” method of transforming the typically terrifying experience into one filled with excitement and “tricks.”

Monroe’s “medical magic” went viral about a month ago, when a video of her treating 4-year-old D’Mitri Shelby showcased her unique technique. The video has captured the attention of national outlets and even Ellen DeGeneres.

In the viral video, Monroe tells D’Mitri she is going to show him a magic trick.

“I thought I was going to get shots!” D’Mitri exclaims.

Monroe pricks D’Mitri’s finger and tells him to “paint circles” with his fingertips. D’Mitri is so captivated, he doesn’t flinch when the needle touches him.

“Whatever age my patient is, I become that age,” Monroe, who works at the Community Health Centers of Pinellas, told the Tampa Bay Times. “If he’s 4, I’m 4.”

D’Mitri’s grandmother recorded the video, impressed by Monroe’s creative distractions, the Times reported.

“This was by far the funniest thing I’ve ever seen with this kid,” Tiffany Shelby Marshall wrote on Facebook. “Like it and share it please this nurse was absolutely phenomenal!”

And the video has been shared – more than 420,000 times. It has also garnered more than 28 million views on Facebook.

Monroe said the video is just a day-in-the-life look at her work in pediatrics, according to the Times. Toward the end of the clip -- when she is about to give D’Mitri shots -- she tells him to hug tight to distract him from the pain.

Monroe’s appearance on “Ellen” was the part of the “One Million Acts of Kindness” campaign. Monroe was a VIP guest, according to the Times.